The Norwich City midfielder Leroy Fer has defended his actions after being accused of poor sportsmanship by Malky Mackay following a controversial conclusion to Saturday's goalless draw.

Fer kicked the ball gently into the Cardiff net in stoppage time, only for the referee, Mike Jones, to rule the strike was not valid, leading Mackay to praise the official and lambast the Holland midfielder.

The Cardiff goalkeeper, David Marshall, had thrown the ball out because of an injury to Norwich's Alex Tettey. When Ricky van Wolfswinkel's throw-in went to Fer, he rolled it into the net as Marshall, far out of goal, waited for the expected return pass, sparking a fracas. Fer, a summer signing from FC Twente, insisted he had done nothing wrong.

"I just looked at the referee and he did 'play on' with his hands, so I think the goal had to count," Fer said. "I'm a little bit confused on that one. I meant to put it in because I wanted to win the game."

The result should have been settled in Norwich's favour long before the moment, which was reminiscent of Marc Overmars's goal for Arsenal against Sheffield United that was so contentious it resulted in an FA Cup replay in 1999.

Norwich found their former goalkeeper Marshall in fine form and missed a host of chances to clinch a third win of the season, leaving them in the relegation zone.

Chris Hughton was the subject of the supporters' ire, particularly after substituting Gary Hooper, who had numerous opportunities to score his first Premier League goal and was getting closer and closer as the match progressed.

Hughton said: "They're a fanatical and emotional support and any frustrations they have is because they want to see us win a game. They would be the exact same frustrations that I would have. I never have any problems with a reaction from the support because what it does do is show that they care."

Hooper was replaced by Johan Elmander while Van Wolfswinkel was held back until three minutes from time, with Hughton reluctant to exacerbate his record signing's toe problem.

The defender Michael Turner believes Norwich's luck will turn. "The amount of chances we created it's ridiculous the fact we haven't scored. That's what happens. You have to make these things happen and make your own little bit of luck. It's not a place we want to be [relegation zone] but the last four performances have been excellent at times. I'm confident if we keep playing the way we are, we keep progressing, then we'll pick up wins."

It does not get any easier, though, with a trip to Manchester United in the Capital One Cup on Tuesday night followed by a Premier League clash at Manchester City on Saturday. "It's an exciting week for us," Turner said. "There is no pressure on us going to Old Trafford in the cup game, no one's expecting us to do anything there. Hopefully we can go up there and play the way we have done in the last few weeks."

Mackay was pleased as Cardiff picked up another point away from home following the draw with Hull and defeat of Fulham. "It's a clean sheet, it's our fifth point away from home and I'm delighted with that," the manager said. "I spoke to a couple of Premier League managers pre-season, who talked about the importance of picking up points away from home and how difficult it is away from home at any ground in this league."

Mackay reserved particular praise for Marshall. "He's someone whose confidence had been knocked when we arrived. He's worked hard, he's got himself back into the Scotland squad. He's a very level-headed young lad and excellent goalkeeper."

• This article was amended on 28 October 2013 to identify the correct scorer of Arsenal's goal against Sheffield United.